The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1887-02-11
Ladies' Department.
Two Dinner Parties---l. Is.


There were -four people at the lit
tie round dinner table. and three of
them knew exactly what this meant.
Mrs. Whitaker understood it. So did
Mr.. Whitaker. So did pretty Jessie
George, Mrs. Whitaker's sister So
did not the baby, but he was busy
beating out q tattoo with his pudgy
little fists and his battered tin plate,
and he would have comprehended
no more if the Others had been as
logical as Euclid.
For taken in the light of her con
text, as the modern commentators
say, Mrs. Whitaker had remarked.
''Now that our relatives have all
invited us to dinner, we must get up
a dinner for them and pay our debts"
And MIR. Whitaker had answered:
II can't afford it-you haven't the
strength for it, and the relatives
won't care about it, because they get
good dinners every day. But, then
if it must be, let it be-
And it was.
The fateful day had arrived, and
the ladies who had spent the pre-
vious day in the preparation OF the
mystic cake, appeared at the break:
fast table with brows bound with
sacrifcial fillets-decorations which
seemed to be built upon founda-
ton of twisted hairpins. Young
Katy O'Hara. the only retainer of
house of Whitaker, was dispatched
to the heir of that noble line, under
special instructions not to let him
60 to sleep, because he must take
his nap late, so as to be out OF the
way at dinner time. The Whitak.
ers and the relatives, be it under
stood, were old fashioned people
and expected their dinner shortly
after noon.
The sisters made all haste to the
kitchen. Lofty pushed her sleeves
above her pretty elbows, and began
to mix stale bread with little of ev-
erything. while a cavernous turkey
yaWned on one side of her and an
open cooking book on the other
Jessie George, who had volunteered
to dress the prairie chickens, turned
them over rather doubtfully. The
Whitakers had never felt that they
could afford to buy game for them.
selves, out the relatives were used to
such things.
"What pretty feathers!" said Jes-
sic. cpl cut off the wings and put
them on my winter hat. l am sure
the Audubons couldn't object to that,
and they are just the right shade of
brown
The next step was not so clear.
"Lotty,' asked Jessie, show do you
dress gamer"
Shy undressing it, first, I suppose,
just like a tame chicken" replied
Mrs. Lofty, IL am sure I don't know
anything about it, though
A prairie chicken, by the way, is
very easy to skin, but very hard to
pluck.
"The feathers are so little" sighed
Jessie after laborious pause. "Be.
sides the birds have such a queer
smell, don't like it,
"That's the game flavor, you
know" said Lofty complacently.
"You don't like it because you are
not used to it. I am so glad Dick
got them. 1t will give quite an air
to the dinner"
"The air is all l shall want" said
Jessie, "you needn't give me any of
the game"
There was another pause broken
by a howl from above.
80 dear!'' said Lofty. 81 was afraid
baby wouldn't be good with Katy
this morning. l do wish that tooth
would come through"
Another shrek.
"And the turkey ought to be in"
cried Lofty, tragically. "Dear me
Jessie have you just that one chick
en- fnished?"
G.Tho+.e oil - cold Ioos;a hale